I loaded the Mysticism panel.

Chapter 148 Highland Summer Lodge

After the old man finished speaking, he put the teacup back on the table.

"Another pot, please."

"Okay."

The proprietress brought out the second pot of tea, and Mr. Hutton changed his sitting posture.

"You've all probably read in books that the world behind the veil and the material world have weaknesses that allow them to seep into each other."

"Evil things come into the material world through weak points, and similarly, we need to rely on the same weak points to infiltrate it."

Mr. Hutton took another sip of his tea at a leisurely pace.

"You can think of this kind of infiltration behind the curtain as cave diving; the weak point is your fixed exit."

"But unlike cave diving, if you're lucky enough, you might find other exits or temporary air pockets after getting lost, allowing you to catch your breath."

Once you lose your way in the world behind the curtain, you'll only sink deeper and deeper, never to return.

Everyone present felt a chill run down their spine.

"Alright, alright," Mrs. McNeil clapped her hands.

"Breakfast is over. Everyone, please go back to your rooms and pack your gear."

"We'll meet back at this table at nine o'clock. Captain Field will conduct an equipment check before we depart."

At nine o'clock, the long table in the hostel was temporarily cleared out.

Captain Field pulled his chair two steps away from the table and sat down directly in front of it.

"Edmond comes first, alphabetically."

Edmund placed the backpack on the table and arranged its contents in layers.

At the very top is a small book with a black cover. There is no title on the spine, only a simple cross.

This is a prayer book; every priest must carry one with him.

Captain Field frowned, but said nothing more.

The second item was a silver box with a bowed lamb printed on the lid.

"Holy oil," Edmund explained, "apply a little to wounds contaminated with ether to stop the next stage of infection."

"The seminary's 'bleed control'?" Theodore asked curiously from the side.

"To be precise, it's 'stopping the infection'," Edmund corrected. "Bloodshed is bloodshed, and pollution is pollution."

"This is good," Captain Field commented.

The next items were a silver dagger, darts, and hemp rope that had been soaked in holy water for a long time.

These two items are not exactly rare, but they are good mediums for casting spells.

"There are also bandages and emergency medicines." Edmund unfolded the last small roll of cloth.

Inside are basic wound care supplies: bandages, disinfectant, tweezers, suture needles, suture thread...

"Did the seminary train you in stitching?" Captain Field asked.

“I was trained,” Edmund said. “I was forced into it two years ago while volunteering at a shelter.”

"Good." Captain Field nodded. "Edmund is qualified."

Edmund put his things back into his backpack and made room for him.

Richard stepped forward and placed his backpack on the table.

First up is the Webley military revolver.

The gun case was opened, and the magazine contained six ordinary lead bullets.

"Standard ammunition," Richard said. "Five rounds chambered, one ready in position one of the magazines."

"Do you have enchanted bullets?" Captain Field asked.

"Close to your waist, in a tin box." Richard took the small tin box out of his coat's inner pocket.

The iron box was opened, and six single-ring enchanted bullets lay neatly in the black cloth.

He also gave a brief explanation about the Stone Armor.

Next up is the box of silver needles from the Moon Nail.

"Knowing to use an old, experienced needle, it seems the person who taught you is very knowledgeable."

Captain Field picked up one: "Not bad, I practiced a similar technique back then."

He put the needle back in the box: "How long is it taking for your moon nail to take shape now?"

"Two seconds."

"distance?"

"About five meters."

"It's sufficient for the newcomer phase."

"Yes."

Theodore's gear was much simpler compared to the previous two.

An old-fashioned flintlock pistol, a bag of purified salt, and a bunch of gray stamens that he had tied crookedly himself.

And a large, ugly bronze compass that looked out of place in this era.

Richard glanced at it and realized that the bronze compass was a rare object.

Although it was a rare object, he had no intention of taking the opportunity to drain its ether.

This thing was clearly given to him by his mentor to save his life; absorbing it dry would be tantamount to murder.

"Is that bronze compass some kind of wonder?" Captain Field sensed it too.

"Mr. Pembroke gave it to me," Theodore nodded. "He said I have decent inspiration, but a terrible sense of direction."

What does "very bad" mean?

"When I was little, I would sometimes get lost on my way home from school."

Several people around the table couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"So Mr. Pembroke gave me this compass," Theodore continued.

"This thing can enhance my spiritual vision and stabilize my sense of direction, so that even if I get lost in the shallows, I can find my way back."

"Barely acceptable," Captain Field nodded. "At least if you get lost, we won't have to look for you."

Maggie came up last.

Her equipment consisted of only a hunting knife, a bag of purified salt, and a polished oak walking stick with a ram's horn carving on the top, similar to the old shepherd's walking stick.

"The short staff is a medium for casting spells, and we can use our family's ancestral formula," she said. "It's called the 'Azure Ring'."

"What's the purpose?" Sarah asked, somewhat intrigued.

"I'll create a small ring of ether around myself," Maggie explained.

"After the spell is cast, the Bewitching Lamp won't notice me, and the Swamp Corpse won't look at me."

"...Invisible?" Theodore's eyes widened.

"It's not invisibility," Maggie corrected. "Invisibility means not being seen, and the cyan ring means not being noticed."

"On the ethereal level, I appear as a tree, and these evil beings are not interested in trees."

"This technique is interesting." Captain Field nodded. "What's the upper limit?"

"In the newcomer stage, the maximum level is lower-level evil creatures." Maggie said with some helplessness.

"Lower-level evil beings and above have their own judgment and can recognize them, and the effects will be removed after they take the initiative to attack."

"That's enough." Captain Field was satisfied. "No wonder he's a local."

After inspecting the equipment, the captain took out four small brass whistles from a wooden box.

"This whistle is an emergency distress signal when contact with the anchor point is lost."

"Once the whistle is sounded, its location can be pinpointed by other practitioners in the industry."

"Give us a whistle, and we'll be there in thirty seconds."

Theodore scratched his head: "What if no one comes in thirty seconds?"

"It hasn't even been thirty seconds, which means we're in trouble ourselves. You can only leave it to fate."

Captain Field distributed the four small brass whistles.

Richard took his own; the brass whistle was very light, and he could barely feel it in his hand.

He tied the copper whistle around his neck with a thin rope and hid it in his clothes.

After having lunch at eleven o'clock, the carriage drove out of Whitcomb village, with the same old man as yesterday as the driver.

The hunting routes were not official roads, but rather small paths trodden out by herdsmen and donkeys in earlier years.

The carriage bounced violently, and a creak could be heard from under the axle every time it passed a rut.

There were six people in the carriage, crammed together shoulder to shoulder.

Captain Field sat by the carriage door, a short-barreled pistol tucked into his boot.

A leather ammunition pouch hung from the exposed belt, the pouch bearing the small shield emblem of the Imperial Army.

Sarah sat opposite him, the double-barreled shotgun disassembled and stored in two leather tubes.

Four newcomers squeezed into the other end of the carriage.

Edmund stared at his prayer book, muttering something under his breath.

Maggie pulled her cloak tighter and buried her chin in the collar.

Theodore was busy testing his compass.

The pointer swung back and forth with the swaying of the carriage. Every now and then, he would raise his hand to hold the compass horizontally, let the pointer stop, and then take the reading.

Richard sat by the window.

It took about an hour for the horse-drawn carriage to travel from the village entrance to the vicinity of the destination.

The driver stopped at the top of a hill.

"arrive."

The place where we got off the bus was a gentle slope.

If you walk a little further, you can see low, circular or semi-circular stone circles on the ground.

This is a temporary stone hut used by shepherds for summer grazing hundreds of years ago.

Most of the stone houses have collapsed, and only half of the circular wall remains of the most intact one.

Richard immediately sensed the etheric field in this area upon getting out of the car; it was completely different from that near Whitcomb.

For generations, herdsmen have lit a midsummer fire here, burning the same kind of firewood in the same spot every year.

There is a thin layer of ritual traces in the soil.

This is probably what Mr. Hutton meant by micro-sacrificial scars.

Sarah took out the leather case and assembled her double-barreled shotgun in less than ten seconds.

"Come over here, everyone."

Four newcomers followed her toward the most complete semi-circular stone house.

Upon reaching the stone house, the huntress took a small piece of charcoal from her leather pouch.

"Stand still," she said to the four people. "Take off your hats."

Sarah went up to Edmund first and lit a charcoal mark under his nose.

"What are you doing?" Edmund didn't flinch.

"It's an old rule in the Highlands," Sarah said. "When you get close to shore, your face can't be too clean."

"A clean face is like a lamp; it attracts evil spirits."

She walked up to Maggie, who had already turned her face up to face her.

"No need to explain, I understand."

"Did your mom order this for you?" Sarah asked.

"I ordered it."

When they reached Theodore's side, the boy from the horse farm held his breath nervously.

"Don't be nervous." The huntress smiled, a rare occurrence, and lit the charcoal. "It's not like you're applying paint."

After wiping, all four of them had a dirty patch on their faces.

"Now you all look like Highlanders," Captain Field said as he walked over.

Sarah looked at him.

"start?"

"Let's begin."

Captain Field walked to the center of the semicircular wall of the stone house.

"You four, come here."

The four of them moved over and stood in front of him.

"The Highland Shcher settlement is a stable weak point," Captain Field said.

"Stability means that the 'doors' here won't go astray; they'll always open in the same spot."

"Where is the 'door'?" Theodore asked.

"Under your feet," Captain Field said.

Theodore instinctively looked down at the grass beneath his feet.

"You can't see it," Captain Field scoffed. "Looking down won't help."

The boy's face flushed slightly.

"Today I will teach you how to find the door, how to go in, and how to remember the way back."

"First of all, it should be noted that the concentration of ether in the nearshore area is several times that of the material world."

He raised his hand, making a gesture with his palm facing inward.

This leads to two direct results.

"First, everything related to Ether has been enhanced."

"Your microcirculation operates faster on that side, and your ether reserves are replenished much faster, roughly 30 to 50 percent faster than on this side of the material world."

The technique has a shorter coagulation time and higher intensity.

"Secondly, everything unrelated to ether was suppressed."

"Neither flintlock lead bullets nor Webley lead bullets were of much use over there."

"Why?" Theodore asked immediately.

"The evil things near the shore are essentially condensed ether," Captain Field explained.

"When ordinary lead bullets hit them, it's like poking a cloud of fog with a stick."

"We've passed through, but the fog remains."

"Enchanted bullets and lead-silver bullets are effective," Sarah interjected at this point. "Aetherial damage is what can truly tear them apart."

Captain Field nodded: "When we're on field missions, we mostly use lead-silver bullets, which are cheaper than enchanted bullets."

While it can't compare to specially enchanted bullets, it's far superior to regular bullets.

Richard silently weighed the ammunition magazine at his waist, deciding he needed to save up more silver bullets in the future.